How technology has changed marketing techniques

Marketing is no modern concept. With the advent of Gutenberg’s printing press in 1450, and the subsequent explosion of mass printing that invention facilitated, the first advertising, such as it was, reared its beautiful head. Hardly half a millennium later, however, the early 1920s heralded the beginning of technology’s great and unstoppable metamorphosis.

First, audio broadcasting radio was launched for the enjoyment of the general populace in 1920, and DJs started making themselves heard, promoting products and services to an audience far less limited than that which printed media could reach. Less than a decade passed before video killed the radio star – Yeah! … Just in case the last post didn’t get that going round and round your brain – or at least, broadcast television made an appearance.

Telemarketing changed the marketing landscape a little more in the 1970s. In the early 80’s personal desk-top computers became more readily available thanks to IBM. Then, in 1995, the internet was commercialised … and consumerism, culture and commerce were revolutionised.

Now the traffic in the marketplace is global. Small business marketing can have far reaching effects, and there’s no end to the potential. In the last 30 years there have been more changes than in the last five centuries. But – and here’s the important point I’m meandering towards – the changes just keep coming. Keeping abreast of those changes is a full time job on its own, and one I take rather seriously.

Only a few months ago, search engine optimisation (SEO) demanded a magician’s hat full to the brim with tricks. Keywords plugged into the backend of your website, mass back-linking, and keyword-heavy content were the ‘done’ thing. Now there’s a thing called Search Engine De-optimisation (SED). The search engines are only interested in high quality, fresh and useful content which Google et al. can pick through on behalf of the world’s web-based population, listing those deemed best at the top, and relegating anything less worthy to the pages almost no one navigates to.

While these online changes are taking place, the next big marketing platform is slowly making itself felt. At least for those of us who have to be aware of these things. Mobile technology is where it’s – almost – at. If your website doesn’t work on a mobile device, Google will demerit you… like being sent to the headmaster for only doing half a job on your school assignment, only with rather more severe consequences. The school assignment might have seen you stuck in detention for an hour, the non-mobile friendly site will see you stuck on page 999, 999 of Google’s search results. That’s so obscure, you may as well not be online.

The Technology Timeline: click to see how technology has advanced through the ages

Keeping up with what to do and what not to do, as Google changes its algorithms and new hardware and software platforms are developed, can really be headache-inducing. As content marketers it is our responsibility to stay abreast of those changes to ensure our clients continue to reap the potential benefits. How do you make sure you are staying on top of changes in technology to give your business the best chance you can in the World Wide Marketplace?